Archive For

2013 has been kind of a strange music year on the live front. Usually there are several major rock shows to chose from, but in 2013, the Festival tours have avoided Cincinnati, and there hasn’t been any major hard rock tours to speak of. Usually I find myself behind the camera glass for several shows, but the first half of 2013 has been mostly country shows at the major venues and I don’t shoot or cover those.

I have been to several shows in 2013, and after attending several shows this year, I quickly began to realize that I have been spending far less on concerts than I have in 2012.

With that being said, I have still been able to catch a few bands here and there, and I have been able to do so without breaking the bank.

Billy Idol, Cheap Thrill, Foreigner, Alice Cooper, Night Ranger, Cheap Trick & Brother Cane are some of the recent bands I have seen. Total ticket money spent $120.00. Considering this is about how much I dropped for KISS & Motley Crue tickets in 2012, this is somewhat of a bargain. In fact, many of the shows were free events paid for by Radio stations & their sponsors.

Some of these shows I wouldn’t have found out about without digging around Pollstar to see where the bands were playing at. They weren’t all local shows, but I am always willing to drive to a reasonably priced show if it isn’t too far. Sometimes it pays, to scan your neighboring cities on Pollstar to see if your favorite bands are within driving distance. You can also find many free shows at State Fairs as well.

In 2013, Cincinnati’s newest concert venue, The Horseshoe Casino, has offered several shows averaging around $40.00 in price. The concerts haven’t been big multi-band festival shows. They are usually single band offerings, but all of the shows have been great so far. I appreciate having a new place to see a few shows that isn’t so costly.

You can still rock in America on a budget. You just need to know where to look.

(The photo’s below were taken with a point & shoot. Apparently, I have a sickness where I can’t go to a show, and snap some photos.)